Painting Contractors Now Have Specialist General Liability Coverage

Painting Contractors Now Have Specialist General Liability Coverage

Due to the struggling economy that we’ve seen in recent years, many industries have suffered from a lack of jobs. One industry that was hit especially hard was the building industry, and as a result there were many painting contractors who had to transition from multiple workers to owner-operator type businesses. Liability was a tremendous concern for these contractors, because if any of their employees got injured, they could wind up out of business for good. Painting contractors weren’t afforded the same kind of general liability insurance coverage as other specialized contractors.

Now that the painting trade is picking back up as the economy recovers, new workers are being hired to complete the higher volume of jobs that have become available. For the most part, painting contractors have a lot of the same liability concerns as general contractors. However, there are some factors that are unique to painting contractors that have been ignored in the provisions of general liability insurance policies.

General liability insurance covers legal and medical fees for anyone who’s injured on a work site, whether the person is a customer, visitor, or passerby. These injuries are typically due to some degree of negligence on behalf of the contractor. In the painting industry, there are circumstances unlike those in other contracting jobs that need to be accounted for in liability insurance coverage. For example, if a painter is on a ladder and drops his paint all over the floor, there’s a good chance the floor is ruined. What if the paint fell on a person? That person would be pretty unhappy, to say the least. Additionally, if a painting contractor is at a job in an older building that was once painted with lead-based paint, that’s a serious liability. If a painter is scraping the walls and reveals lead-based paint, everyone in the area is at risk of lead fume exposure, which could result in numerous lawsuits and injuries. General liability insurance in such an instance is vital because it pays for the property repairs, medical and legal fees.

Now that painting contractors can get specialized general liability insurance policies to cover all their bases, they’re able to take on new jobs without the fear of losing everything in a liability suit.